The invention relates to a light assembly and more specifically to a portable light assembly that would be installed in an automobile.
Motorists know that having a light, such as a flashlight, in an automobile is a good idea. Should trouble arise after sundown, a light source is needed to signal for help or to work on the vehicle.
The light sources currently available include common battery powered flashlights and sealed beamed lights. Also available are lights which are powered from the cigarette lighter outlet. Cigarette lighter powered units are limited by the length of wiring available with the unit and if the vehicle battery is discharged, the light is useless. Even having a long length of wiring is not as good as having a self contained light assembly. Battery powered lighting is preferable because of the high mobility provided. The trouble with batteries is, unless monitored, the batteries can lose power and fail when most needed.
When a motorist is disabled and stopped along a roadside there is need for warning approaching vehicles. Flares are common for truckers and reflective signs are used by both truckers and motorists as a way of warning those approaching the disabled vehicle. The problem here is the flares are not commonly available and flares can be dangerous as a fire hazard.
From the many prior art portable battery operated lights using rechargable batteries, probably the most pertinent prior is the device described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,605,993, Zelina. This single white light unit is removably encased in a receptacle containing the battery charger operable from the house power line. A similar device incorporating two light fixtures is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,535,391, Meng-Chang-Hsiao. The two lights are mounted on a single case containing a commercial power operated battery charger. A hand carried flash lamp using rechargable batteries powered by an extension cord plugged into the vehicles cigarette lighter receptacle is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,357,648. A portable battery operated dual lamp assembly is described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,861,174, where one lamp is used for illumination and the second light is operated as an emergency warning light.
It is an object of the invention to provide a novel portable light assembly that has both a flashlight and a signal lamp that can be conveniently carried in an automobile.
It is also an object of the invention to provide a portable light assembly in which the flashlight and signal lamp each have their own rechargable battery base unit that is detachably received in a combination recharging and storage housing. An electrical circuit connects the battery of the vehicle through the ignition switch to the terminals on the rear wall surface of the combination recharging and storage housing so that they may be recharged from the battery of the vehicle.
It is another object of the invention to provide a novel portable light assembly wherein the flashlight and signal lamp each have an L.E.D. indicator lamp mounted on their respective rechargable battery base units that will indicate when the batteries therein are being recharged.
It is an additional object of the invention to provide a novel portable light assembly for an automobile that is economical to manufacture and market.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a novel portable light assembly for an automobile that can be easily installed by a do-it-yourselfer.